Over 50 now and I still have a bookshelf that my dad and I built together when I was a kid. It’s nothing special to look at, but I will keep it forever.
I have a desk that my dad and I built 30 years ago. I currently live in an apartment 1/10 the size of the suburban home I grew up in. And that desk chews up a massive amount of my living room. I know I should get rid of it but I really don't want to. I thank God my spouse is understanding.
Same age, but a dresser that me and my mom refinished together. Unfortunately I was in a Little House on the Prairie phase at the time and put cornflower blue drawer liner in it. My bad.
I have a book shelf that I've brought with me to so many different places since I moved out at 17 (30 now). I painted it the same color as I painted my bedroom when I was 15, and I love it. My parents just came to visit last week and my dad said he made it! I've been hauling it from house to house to house for years and never realized haha. Definitely never getting rid of it now.
Pencil sharpener. The old style that you can mount to the wall or tabletop. After going through a few new ones that were garbage quality I asked my parents for the one we had when I was a kid. Turns out it’s actually from when my dad was a kid. Still works.
For those looking for incredible quality new pencil sharpener, check out the Carl Angel 5. It is better than other sharpener I have ever used. I have given them to both of my kids and fully expect them to be on this thread 30 years from now talking about their pencil sharpeners.
I inherited my parents’ flatware and China. Both date from the early 60s and are of *significantly* higher quality than anything I can buy today. It’s just a bonus that I also get to use my favorite spoon from when I was 4 :p
Thanks for the reminder!
I have my grandparents’ China set from their wedding in 1945. I was born the night of their 25th anniversary, so I was always promised the set, complete with serving dishes, some covered, creamer/sugar, footed gravy boat. It’s really lovely, they used it every night from the time they got it through 1989, when the hutch that held them toppled in the SF earthquake.
Testing positive for lead would only explain my aunt’s historically bizarre behaviors and her lesser intellect. Grandparents and my mom, were all very intelligent.
Thanks for the reminder!
I inherited a dish set from my grandparents… mildly collectible and good memories, and I loved the set, used for several years and had mentioned the set on Reddit and a person found my comment and told me to have it tested for lead, that theirs had lead. Mine had lead. :( I now have Corelle dishes.
With respect, I do not understand the popularity of Corelle dishes. I hate using them every time I'm at someone's place that has them. They feel very lightweight from what I'm used to (read: "cheap" but also breakable) but moreover they heat up like crazy in the microwave. You can't really use them w/o having to break out the hotpads just to heat up a plate of food. Plus, most of them are smaller than I like for a plate.
Am I missing something? Like, I'm actually asking here. I don't understand.
I'm not saying everyone needs to have the Pfaltzgraff dishes I have (which, most are Seconds or bought at thrift stores so they didn't cost that much), but surely there's something similarly priced to Corelle but better. (Our plates growing up were some kind of [no-name plates with strawberries](https://www.mercari.com/us/item/m84465555542/) but they felt better than Corelle.)
I’m 72 and I’m sitting on a sofa my parents bought in 1956. Mid century modern- clean lines… It has been recovered several times. I replaced the foam seats with high quality foam a few years ago. When I tell you it’s in good shape, I mean it has no sagging, no squeaking, no loose arms.
It originally had a wheat colored linen textured fabric. For most of its life it was gold Naugahyde. Then, I’m embarrassed to say I picked the current fabric back in the eighties. 😝
Leatherman! My mom and dad got me one when I got my Eagle Scout badge. I still have and use it almost daily. The company has a great repair program where if you need to mail it in for service work you can select if it has sentimental value. If it does, they'll try to retain as much of the one you send in as possible.
Great company and tool. I'll never use anything else and I give them as gifts all the time.
Oh man I had a pocket knife that I got as a cub scout but one day at the airport in my late 20s I accidentally packed it into my carry-on bag instead of my checked bag and TSA confiscated it. I bet it would have lasted for decades more if I hadn't made that little mistake (or if TSA were more flexible).
I was thinking I didn't really have anything that I still use but then read your comment and realized I've got a lot of tools my Dad taught me with that are still used regularly.
I'm 60 years old. Our dining table belonged to my great grandparents. Then, it belonged to my parents when I was a child. My grandmother had her tonsils removed on that table at home as a young girl. Back in the day when doctors made house calls and apparently at home surgical procedures.
Hey man, I can remove your tonsils on your table for a fee. Think of how legendary your grandchildren will think that table is when you kick the bucket.
Mine belonged to my great great grandparents! They bought the dining table, a desk, and a library table on their honeymoon in St Louis in 1906, and had it shipped up the Mississippi to Northern Minnesota. My parents had them when I was a kid, and my mom passed them on to me. I have no knowledge of any surgeries done on any of them.
I also heard an unintuitive claim: surgery performed where the surgeon is unmasked results in fewer infections. Apparently it boils down to “trusting a mask too much” or something… an unmasked doctor would be aware of each breath and exhale it in a safe direction.
I have not verified any of this.
I am 51. I use so many things that are from older generations. My desk was my great grandfathers, I have really cool fire king beehive bowls. They have a handle. I would eat cereal at my grandmothers out of them. They are older than I am. I have paintings that my father made and needlework from my grandmother and mother that adorn my walls. So many items that remind me of the people I love and care about who are gone from the world. ❤️
We also display paintings and needlework by parents and grands, along with photos of them looking like film stars – it makes them still feel present in our life. And best of all: my mom made a quilt for our anniversary that includes blocks made from textiles that have been made and handed down through generations: Irish lace made by a grandmother, fabric from a christening bonnet that couldn't be salvaged, etc. It's a treasure.
I have my grandmother's pot that she made sauce in. She was born in 1903 if that gives you an idea of its age. It is huge, too big for my use, but I have used it. I also have a glass Pyrex Flameware coffee percolator my mother got for her wedding shower in 1963. It is in perfect condition as she preferred the Farberware electric percolator, which I also still have!
You just reminded me that I still have my grandma’s Pyrex electric percolator in my cabinet. I don’t drink coffee anymore, but I’ll bet it would heat water for tea! Now where did I put that cord…..
When I was a toddler (early 70s), my parents gave me some sort of "baby's first toolkit." Most of the tools were toys, but one of them is a little 9" claw hammer. It's just a toy: 9" wood handle, 2" metal claw head, maybe 4 oz. total. But it turns out to work just fine for an amazing number of small jobs around the house, and its size and weight make it a much easier fit into the home toolkit than my real claw hammer.
Ha! My grandfather made me a little tool bench and it had a 1/2 sized bench vise on it. No idea where the bench went, but that vise is just right for all kinds of fixing stuff around the house four decades later
I found a use for these - they serve as a constant reminder for me on what \*not\* to do as a parent, and what \*not\* to pass on to my kid. As a result, my kid says even their friends could tell I am a wonderful parent!
I have an old school ice cream scoop with the scoop eject trigger. The plastic handle is cracked but it works great despite being at least 60 years old
I have some that my mom got from my grandmother then gave to me. I cherish them so much. In some cases, I've lucked out in thrift stores and have found other pieces in the same two patterns.
Hey! Teaspoon gang! I have most of a set of stainless steel cutlery my parents bought before I was born. The teaspoons are my favourite utensil from it. There are only three left. They have a nicer shape than any teaspoons I can find today.
Yep. As is tradition.
I also used it to hold my wife's engagement ring as we hiked up a mountain and proposed to her at the top. Damn thing has magical properties, lol!
My dad is still using the swing away can opener that was mounted in the kitchen of my childhood home. It’s no longer mounted since he sold the house over thirty years ago. Before it was mounted there, it belonged to my great grandparents and was in the main cabin of their estate that they owned since, well I think, forever. 😂 I don’t know exactly when they bought that place, but they had it before my dad was born in the 40s. No clue when they bought the can opener.
I wish I still had my dad's Pioneer stereo. The cabinet speakers we used like furniture, and the actual cabinet he had the receiver, turntable and reel to reel in. Such a good sound.
Not exactly my childhood Home, but I have my grandparents' vacuum cleaner. The thing is a bit bulky, and needs bags, but it seems damn near indestructible. It is about as old as I am.
Teak patio set that predates my birth.
I refinished it a few years ago and it looks great; stays outside year round.
Bodum French Press. Stainless & borosilicate.
I don't drink coffee on the regular and it is a great ritual.
Lots of graphic T-shirts from the 80s/90s.
Faded, but looking good.
Metric boatload of tools.
Grandfather died and I was given all of his hand tools. Simpler times... when stuff was easily fixable.
I have a cake platter that winds up like a music box and plays happy birthday and spins the cake. My grandma bought it in the 60s and I still break it out for birthdays. I also have her kitchen aid mixer that I use to make Christmas cookies every year.
TBH, lots of things: lovely antique furniture pieces & decor items, hand tools of my Dad’s, *lots* of books (thankfully minus my parents’ copy of “The Joy of Sex” I stumbled across as a budding young book lover & agile bookshelf climber, turned spine in on a top shelf - it wasn’t the depicted sex acts that were burned into my mind so much as the *super hairy* 70s aesthetic x_x), roses transplanted from my childhood home when my parents sold it, garden pots & other outdoor decor, and more. I think probably most impressive, though, is the yellow GE electric hand mixer my mom must’ve bought in the 60s or 70s, still going strong and used regularly in our kitchen.
I’ve used the same hair brush, comb and travel mirror for 30+ years. The hair brush and comb are generic brands and the travel mirror was a trade show giveaway my dad brought home from a convention when I was 10.
I am 46 and I have two pots that my Grandma used (she would be 89 next week) when she was in her mid-40s. My Mom then used one of them as a popcorn pot and the other to make brownies that required melted butter and chocolate.
I use both pots all the time. They both have wooden handles so I have to be very careful, but I love both.
55 and I haven’t got it, but the double bed that I got when I was 4 is still at my mother’s house in her guest bedroom along with the matching dresser that came from Sears.
My bedroom suite is at my mom’s. Her mom bought it for me when I was about 5 or 6. It’s bird’s eye maple. I remember running around the antique mall in a blue flowered sun dress while they picked it out. The vanity has a burn mark from an unattended candle I left burning while tripping my balls off on acid in high school.
A Buck Knife pocket knife - it looks most similar to the solo 1. Great grandpa gave it to me when I was 3 (great Idea, I immediately sliced my knuckle) and I still use it all the time. I'm only 31 but I figure 28 years is long enough to warrant an answer.
A house that my grandparents bought in 1957. Although I only spent weekends in it as a child, my mother now lives there and I've been tasked with overseeing a fairly extensive round of renovations.
I ended up with my grandmothers set of 4 Pyrex bowls. 4 different sizes and colors. They sat in a box for a while but I use at least one daily in the past 4 years.
I have a pocket tape measure that my mom got in the 70s and I still use. I also still use my jackknife from Girl Scouts, same era.
Oh, and my dressers are also mid-70s. My parents bought them at a garage sale in 1982, and I've used them ever since. I replaced the pulls recently, and they could do with a repainting but not badly enough for me to want to do the work.
My middle school stencil ruler (bright yellow with shapes and the alphabet).
Kitchen items that I remember from my childhood and that I semi-poached from my mom (she wasn't as attached to the stuff as I am): A Duncan Hines sauce pan, a stainless steel stock pot that she bought from a door-to-door salesman, her turkey platter (with an actual turkey painted on it in relief), a Corning Ware casserole, a 9/13 baking dish, some utensils from the 60s, and a bowl that started me on the path to collecting Pyrex.
My grandmother's wood jewelry box.
A plastic yellow hairbrush that I just cannot find a modern similar version of so I keep using it even though it has missing teeth.
Bradford freezer my parents had it before i was born im pretty sure the company went out of business before i was born. Probably due to no return customers since it never dies.
I still have many of the things I bought when I went to college. Simple things like a stapler, a tape measure, a pocket spelling dictionary (!!), a pocket thesaurus, a small flashlight, a compact edition of the OED. Since I had such a robust habit of using them, I still use even the OED regularly today. Buying and using for life often go hand in hand.
I do not have anything from my childhood at all. Not even photos. But I have a still perfectly fine pocket spelling dictionary.
When I started college in the 1990s, my mom gave me some Corning Ware that we had my entire life. I am never getting rid of it.
My dad gave me a Craftsman toolbox full of tools. I didn't live with him so I didn't really have it growing up, but he probably had it. Another thing that I will probably never get rid of.
We have my husband's mom's dining table. It's solid wood so I doubt we will ever replace it, but it needs some repairs to the leaf extension parts.
Will be 48 this year. I have some guitar stuff - even a digital effects processor (zoom or zoom II or something) that still works, but it's obviously outdated.
I doubt much digital stuff made now will work 28-30 years from now. I've got a boatload of guitars, and wish I could say that I had any from my youth - first non-budget guitar was an ibanez MC 150 musician. bought for $295, sold it for $250 in college. Only had to buy four a few years ago to find a decent one, and it was, if I recall $900. But I am glad to have it.
oh....green LED flashlight. late teenage years - before you could get flashlights with white LEDs. At the time, you could get red or green, and I think blue was just coming out (cost more). White was not long after, but at the time, we didn't know that. $30 for a little four LED light that makes little light, but having a flashlight that you could leave on for 11 days or something on one set of AA batteries was really novel. A pilot tipped me off when they came out because they used to at least use flashlights a lot in plane cockpits. Green was his advice due to maps often having red lines - more important to him than me. It's in my work bag in case I need a flashlight. I've had countless much brighter flashlights last a few years and die and old greenie still works.
more...variable speed reversible corded craftsman drill with keyless chuck. 1990 or so? forgot about it and should pitch it.
All of the CDs I bought in 1990+, too, but lots of folks probably have those. the tapes haven't fared quite so well.
In my 60's - high school year books and trophies - because my mom sent them to me a few years ago... Don't really use them. Photos. Letterman jacket - don't wear it, but in remarkable shape for 50 years old. Some knickknacks.
The only only things that I really use are hand tools - some of which my father purchased in the 1950's. A cast iron frying pan that my mom bought in the 1950's. I have a pistol - which I am afraid to shoot from the 40's and a shotgun from the 1970's that is perfectly functional. Some alpaca wool items that I bought in 1981.
The more I think about this, the more I remember...
I'm packing to move and I came across a CD holder drawer that I built in high school. At the time I figured three rows of CDs would be enough storage because my goodness they were expensive at the time (looks at the boxes and suitcases of CDs under the bed) Currently it holds just random stereo related crap.
It's not quite what you asked, but all my cookware is vintage from thrift store; various cast iron, pots and pans are Revere Ware, utensils are mostly Flint or Ekco. Mostly because I got out of a bad relationship ~4 years ago and left with basically my clothes and some old stereo gear.
My sister and I learned to sew on a Singer treadle sewing machine that was our great-grandmother's. After she died, my grandfather found it in her barn, where it had apparently been stashed for decades. He restored it and gave it to mom. The machine is still fully functional (as is mom!), but now it's mostly decorative unless the next generation of great-grandkids visits.
I still use an Ecko hand-cranked eggbeater with a pink Bakelite handle that came from my husband's family. We still use their Penguin ice bucket, the hollow-stem champagne flutes his parents got as a wedding gift in the 1940s, and his grandmother's Heywood-Wakefield dining and end tables (my faves!).
We wouldn't dream of junking it, ever. My mom's quite a quilter herself. Will have to ask whether she's ever quilted using the Singer. I think she mostly uses a longarm (?) and does a lot of hand quilting.
I am 65. I have an aluminum ice cream scoop (has to be hand washed) and a secretary desk. I remember dusting and polishing the secretary every week as a young kid.
I have a polo shirt that I bought on a trip to NYC when I was 20 years old. I'm 43 now and I still wear it and machine wash it all the time. It doesn't even have any frayed ends or show of wear.
I'm 40. My stepdad and I didn't have a good relationship until my mid/late 20s, but when I was 8 years old he got a new wallet and gave me his old one.
I still use it today, it is one of the few material things I care about.
Only this past February did my partner share with him I still have that wallet 32 years later.
I have Tupperware modular mates that are over 40 years old that I use regularly for storage of flour, sugar, powdered milk, cat food and other dry goods. I've had many lids replaced but the main body of the containers have held up well.
- I had a basic Schafer & Sons upright piano that is now 40+ years old and in great condition (I passed it along to friends)
- Army jacket (1960s) and hawaiian shirt (1970s) that were my dad's
- I wear rings every day that belonged to my mom, my grandmother, and my great-grandmother
- dishes that were my grandparents
- hand tools from my dad
- my Caboodles case that I got in the early 90s. Back then it was for makeup. Now I use it as my sewing box.
I had a lot more items that were still in solid working condition from either my childhood (or inherited from other family), but I got rid of them when I did a cross-country move two years ago (e.g. my mom's sewing machine, kitchen tools and dinnerware).
The dining table in my parents house is at least 100 years old if not older. Big heavy thing with turned wood legs and expandable middle. I love it, there are lots of things carved and scratched into the surface from use over the years, it feels really worn in. I’ll try to find a way to fit it, perhaps with more modern chairs though (the ones with it aren’t original).
Also have a birthday card from my uncle with cute art on it from my 10th birthday sitting in a frame on my desk—the last reminder of my childhood frog era.
I'm almost 40, and I still use the steel toolbox my dad gave me for my 12th birthday. It's one of those super old-school ones, probably from the 50s, that he painted and put my name on.
It's awesome for sentimental reasons, but also exactly what I need for most day-to-day work around the house.
I did have a plastic bedside trash can since I was 6, but my wife when we started dating threw it away without knowing…
I had/have a set of tools that my dad put together for me when I was 5 and ball peen hammer. A small square with bubble level a Philips screwdriver. I have no idea the brand name but I’m 42 and they are still in my toolbox.
Growing up my siblings and I (youngest of four) had a number of classic Fisher Price toys, including the famous wind up music box record player. When my son turned 1, among the gifts they sent was a new one, which is okay but they are now battery powered electronics made in China and don’t actual play the records. Last time I was at my parents’ house I went in the basement, dug through a ton of old toys and stuff to find the original, anno 1976, and brought it back with me. Still works fine.
I use my grandpa’s canoe! It’s metal & heavy but boy oh boy can it take a ding.
I wear my great grandmother’s, grabdmother’s & mother’s jewelry daily. And their vintage clothes often!
I use my Oma’s silverware daily.
A [black Parker 25 fountain pen](https://parkerpens.net/bilder_pennor/25/25-black-bg.jpg) that I've now been writing with for 43 years and it's never failed and still looks brand new.
A craftsman 3 piece toolbox/mechanics starter set from 1989. Got it for my 16th birthday. Still have 70% of the tools it came with. If I remember correctly it was $369 out of the Sears Catalog and took about a month for delivery. I’ve probably replaced 50% of the included pieces through warranty.
I just turned 50. When I was in 2nd grade, I fell in love with a Pillow Pet stuffed animal that was a gorilla. My parents told me that if I got straight As for the year, I could get the gorilla. I named him Gonzo. He is sitting on the couch in my office.
Same. A surprising amount of kitchenware has been passed down the family. Some of it was purchased before I was born. We have dinnerware (and silverware) that were bought when my grandparents’ generation were getting married. They’ve got a few dents and chips, but are otherwise still in rotation!
Oh, and tools. There’s a shovel that’s older than either of my parents, and a rake that is only a few years younger than that.
My favorite is my computer desk. My dad made it for me when I was around 5, it's a scaled-down version of the dining table he made around the same time. It's on the small side and I had to raise it a few inches with blocks of 2x4 but it's served me well for the past 30+ years. I can still see indents from when I was a kid doing my homework and pushed too hard...
I also have the odd assortment of mismatched flatware and a couple old pots. And a stereo from '82.
I have a metal checkbook cover that I bought from a cataglog aimed at the gay community when I was 16. I'm 56 now and still have it. I rarely write a check so mostly it sits in a drawer but I smile every time I see it.
I have a colllection of trolls I got over the years at Disney world. My oldest one is like 26 years old. When I go back I’d probably get another one if I didn’t already have it.
I also have a handmade Easter basket my mom made me when I was born.
I'm not that old (40s) but I use the Corelle dishware my mom had (45+ years old) daily. A cross-stitched rainbow mobile my grandmother made for me when I was born has hung in every place I've lived except college, and I inherited a mission-style solid wood bookcase from my great-grandparents when I was maybe 7 or 8 that sits in my living room today. I don't have any idea how old it is but probably safe to say 60+ years old.
Furniture,jewelry,chairs,lamps,kitchenware,clothing,decor,books,drapes,rugs,tools,knives,guns etc
I grew up with great depression parents. I was taught to make things last. My fathers ww2 army dress jacket is one of my favorite items to wear. I still sport my mothers camel hair coat. I sleep under my grandma's quilt and the rug she made out of old jeans is on my bedroom floor. I still mix bread in her old mixing bowl.
My reading chair is my dad's old armchair. My office chair is his too. I carry his pocketknife. I use my granddads hatchet to split kindling every winter and into his old woodbox it goes.
Things were meant to last back then. I still have pillowcases and hankies that my grandmother embroidered.
We furnished our whole first house from stuff our relatives gave us. Didn't buy a single thing for years.
I have a wooden stool with my name on it- given to me at my baby shower. My kids and wife use it in the kitchen to reach the top shelf of the cabinets. I think it will be around longer than I will be.
I have a large ceramic bowl and silverware that we used when I was a kid. I also have a pair of wire cutters that I found in the street in 1981, still work fine. And I have a dresser and desk that were from that same era, both still in use.
an old Crosley all-in-one my dad got me for my birthday as a teen. my old ipod.
The Crosley doesn't get daily use anymore but at least monthly. my ipod used to be daily use as it was hooked up in my car before I upgraded to a new car last year. I still use it on flights though to save my phone battery.
oh also an old ikea wooden cabinet with glass doors. my dad bought it when I was a kid, can't remember what for anymore but he gave it to me when he moved to a smaller apartment, it's been used to store clothing, kitchen items, and now purses.
and my Nintendo and Sega genesis were used pretty frequently till our most recent TV upgrade, now they don't work with it ☹️
I have a couple of guitar effects that my dad bought me new in the 70s.
An electro-harmonix big muff is one.
I also have a full bedroom set from Ethan Allen that my parents bought in the mid seventies. It’s timelessly styled and solid wood throughout all the pieces.
Have my parents’ kitchen table that I grew up with, an antique clock that my dad restored, and a battered tin that we still store saltine crackers in.
My wife had a ring with a gemstone that has been in her dad’s family for a few generations that she gave to my daughter when she turned 21. Think that is a nice keepsake. My wife still wears a charm bracelet that was her grandmother’s and our kids gave her a few charms to add to it for mother’s day gifts. My wife still has several books that she grew up with.
Over 50 now and I still have a bookshelf that my dad and I built together when I was a kid. It’s nothing special to look at, but I will keep it forever.
I have a desk that my dad and I built 30 years ago. I currently live in an apartment 1/10 the size of the suburban home I grew up in. And that desk chews up a massive amount of my living room. I know I should get rid of it but I really don't want to. I thank God my spouse is understanding.
I have my dad's desk too. He bought it from university property disposition in the early 80s, and it was far from new then.
You can convert it into a bed when you have a guest.
I have the desk my dad built when he was 16 & the popsicle cabin he built when he was ~11. I can’t let go.
My dad built me a bookshelf for a specific nook in my apartment. He asked if I'd leave it there when I move. Uh, no.
❤️❤️❤️
Same age, but a dresser that me and my mom refinished together. Unfortunately I was in a Little House on the Prairie phase at the time and put cornflower blue drawer liner in it. My bad.
I love this. I've had a desk my grandfather made me for about 25 years now. It's too small to use as much more than a vanity, but I cherish it.
I’m in my 20s and I have a small bookshelf I use on my desk my dad made in shop class in high school. It’s just better made furniture
I have a book shelf that I've brought with me to so many different places since I moved out at 17 (30 now). I painted it the same color as I painted my bedroom when I was 15, and I love it. My parents just came to visit last week and my dad said he made it! I've been hauling it from house to house to house for years and never realized haha. Definitely never getting rid of it now.
Attachment to things can go so far beyond the conscious mind. This is a great story. ❤️❤️
Pencil sharpener. The old style that you can mount to the wall or tabletop. After going through a few new ones that were garbage quality I asked my parents for the one we had when I was a kid. Turns out it’s actually from when my dad was a kid. Still works.
I have the wall mount pencil sharpener from my grandfathers garage. It works so much better than the ones you can buy now.
My husband just bought a vintage one from eBay.
For those looking for incredible quality new pencil sharpener, check out the Carl Angel 5. It is better than other sharpener I have ever used. I have given them to both of my kids and fully expect them to be on this thread 30 years from now talking about their pencil sharpeners.
I inherited my parents’ flatware and China. Both date from the early 60s and are of *significantly* higher quality than anything I can buy today. It’s just a bonus that I also get to use my favorite spoon from when I was 4 :p
Have you had the china tested for lead? Please do.
Thanks for the reminder! I have my grandparents’ China set from their wedding in 1945. I was born the night of their 25th anniversary, so I was always promised the set, complete with serving dishes, some covered, creamer/sugar, footed gravy boat. It’s really lovely, they used it every night from the time they got it through 1989, when the hutch that held them toppled in the SF earthquake. Testing positive for lead would only explain my aunt’s historically bizarre behaviors and her lesser intellect. Grandparents and my mom, were all very intelligent. Thanks for the reminder!
I inherited a dish set from my grandparents… mildly collectible and good memories, and I loved the set, used for several years and had mentioned the set on Reddit and a person found my comment and told me to have it tested for lead, that theirs had lead. Mine had lead. :( I now have Corelle dishes.
With respect, I do not understand the popularity of Corelle dishes. I hate using them every time I'm at someone's place that has them. They feel very lightweight from what I'm used to (read: "cheap" but also breakable) but moreover they heat up like crazy in the microwave. You can't really use them w/o having to break out the hotpads just to heat up a plate of food. Plus, most of them are smaller than I like for a plate. Am I missing something? Like, I'm actually asking here. I don't understand. I'm not saying everyone needs to have the Pfaltzgraff dishes I have (which, most are Seconds or bought at thrift stores so they didn't cost that much), but surely there's something similarly priced to Corelle but better. (Our plates growing up were some kind of [no-name plates with strawberries](https://www.mercari.com/us/item/m84465555542/) but they felt better than Corelle.)
I don't think china from that era was equipped to receive texts.
Dude.
I’m 72 and I’m sitting on a sofa my parents bought in 1956. Mid century modern- clean lines… It has been recovered several times. I replaced the foam seats with high quality foam a few years ago. When I tell you it’s in good shape, I mean it has no sagging, no squeaking, no loose arms.
Can we see it?
https:imgur.com/a/fySR7Qv](https://imgur.com/a/fySR7Qv)
It originally had a wheat colored linen textured fabric. For most of its life it was gold Naugahyde. Then, I’m embarrassed to say I picked the current fabric back in the eighties. 😝
That's awesome.
Thanks for sharing!!!
Thank you for sharing a little window to your sofa and your past!
I'm 60, sag and squeak and have loose arms. Maybe I'm old furniture.
i bet it’s gorgeous!
I miss that you can't get many things restored anymore unless you do it yourself...
[удалено]
Leatherman! My mom and dad got me one when I got my Eagle Scout badge. I still have and use it almost daily. The company has a great repair program where if you need to mail it in for service work you can select if it has sentimental value. If it does, they'll try to retain as much of the one you send in as possible. Great company and tool. I'll never use anything else and I give them as gifts all the time.
Oh man I had a pocket knife that I got as a cub scout but one day at the airport in my late 20s I accidentally packed it into my carry-on bag instead of my checked bag and TSA confiscated it. I bet it would have lasted for decades more if I hadn't made that little mistake (or if TSA were more flexible).
I was thinking I didn't really have anything that I still use but then read your comment and realized I've got a lot of tools my Dad taught me with that are still used regularly.
Been carrying around the same swiss army knife for 40+years.
I'm 60 years old. Our dining table belonged to my great grandparents. Then, it belonged to my parents when I was a child. My grandmother had her tonsils removed on that table at home as a young girl. Back in the day when doctors made house calls and apparently at home surgical procedures.
What a legendary table
Hey man, I can remove your tonsils on your table for a fee. Think of how legendary your grandchildren will think that table is when you kick the bucket.
Tempting...
wow! around what year is it from?
The same year as "unmasked surgery is actually safer" guy's medical advice.
I think the mid 1920s.
My grandma also had her tonsils removed on her kitchen table! Probably around 1930.
That's wild! I've not heard anyone else with a similar story. I think for my grandma, it was mid 1920s. Do you still have the table?
Maybe? My parents have her old dining table but I don’t know if it’s the one from her childhood or one she acquired later. My guess is it’s not.
In the original cheaper by the dozen movie they get their tonsils removed at home (like 5 of them at the same visit)
Mine belonged to my great great grandparents! They bought the dining table, a desk, and a library table on their honeymoon in St Louis in 1906, and had it shipped up the Mississippi to Northern Minnesota. My parents had them when I was a kid, and my mom passed them on to me. I have no knowledge of any surgeries done on any of them.
Less likely to get infected at home , unless it's a farm or slum
I also heard an unintuitive claim: surgery performed where the surgeon is unmasked results in fewer infections. Apparently it boils down to “trusting a mask too much” or something… an unmasked doctor would be aware of each breath and exhale it in a safe direction. I have not verified any of this.
Ongoing education keeps people in all professions at the top of their game.
This made me research tonsil removal in the 1900s!
That’s awesome!
I am 51. I use so many things that are from older generations. My desk was my great grandfathers, I have really cool fire king beehive bowls. They have a handle. I would eat cereal at my grandmothers out of them. They are older than I am. I have paintings that my father made and needlework from my grandmother and mother that adorn my walls. So many items that remind me of the people I love and care about who are gone from the world. ❤️
We also display paintings and needlework by parents and grands, along with photos of them looking like film stars – it makes them still feel present in our life. And best of all: my mom made a quilt for our anniversary that includes blocks made from textiles that have been made and handed down through generations: Irish lace made by a grandmother, fabric from a christening bonnet that couldn't be salvaged, etc. It's a treasure.
I have my grandmother's pot that she made sauce in. She was born in 1903 if that gives you an idea of its age. It is huge, too big for my use, but I have used it. I also have a glass Pyrex Flameware coffee percolator my mother got for her wedding shower in 1963. It is in perfect condition as she preferred the Farberware electric percolator, which I also still have!
wow!!
You just reminded me that I still have my grandma’s Pyrex electric percolator in my cabinet. I don’t drink coffee anymore, but I’ll bet it would heat water for tea! Now where did I put that cord…..
I have that same Pyrex glass coffee perc, and the matching tea pot! Both wedding gifts for my mom and dad’s wedding…Pyrex made stuff to last!!
A 100+ year old cast iron skillet was passed down to me 20 years ago, and I’ve cooked thousands of meals on it.
When I was a toddler (early 70s), my parents gave me some sort of "baby's first toolkit." Most of the tools were toys, but one of them is a little 9" claw hammer. It's just a toy: 9" wood handle, 2" metal claw head, maybe 4 oz. total. But it turns out to work just fine for an amazing number of small jobs around the house, and its size and weight make it a much easier fit into the home toolkit than my real claw hammer.
Ha! My grandfather made me a little tool bench and it had a 1/2 sized bench vise on it. No idea where the bench went, but that vise is just right for all kinds of fixing stuff around the house four decades later
I think I have the same one. The hammer is the only surviving tool and recently we found the little metal toolbox
trauma
Hell yeah brother. That's why we're so well adjusted now.
<>
same
I’ll drink to that!
me too, every single day. i hope it comes to burden you less.
I have several but so far haven’t found a use for them. What did you use you use yours for?
I found a use for these - they serve as a constant reminder for me on what \*not\* to do as a parent, and what \*not\* to pass on to my kid. As a result, my kid says even their friends could tell I am a wonderful parent!
A teaspoon and large cooking spoon from my grandmother.
I have an old school ice cream scoop with the scoop eject trigger. The plastic handle is cracked but it works great despite being at least 60 years old
I have some that my mom got from my grandmother then gave to me. I cherish them so much. In some cases, I've lucked out in thrift stores and have found other pieces in the same two patterns.
Hey! Teaspoon gang! I have most of a set of stainless steel cutlery my parents bought before I was born. The teaspoons are my favourite utensil from it. There are only three left. They have a nicer shape than any teaspoons I can find today.
Our dining table is from the late 1600s. It is several inches shorter than a modern table because people used to be shorter.
I think we have a BIFL winner here. Not just this thread … but the whole damn sub! You really need to post some pictures of that table!
I think we need to hear the story behind that! And pics!
Sega Genesis.
This may be my favorite answer on here! Grew up playing Sega and Nintendo. The original consoles are honestly soooo nostalgic but also incredibly fun!
I have our original NES!!!
This is the correct answer right here! WELCO METOT HENEX TLEVEL
Still have my N64 and Goldeneye for when the friends stop by.
I see your Sega Genesis and raise you a Pong.
A 35-mm film container that I first repurposed in 1975 to hold my weed and recently did so again when my state went legal.
That reminds me I have a film container I've always kept my body jewelry in. Those little beads are a bitch to keep track of
Is it black with a grey cap?
Yep. As is tradition. I also used it to hold my wife's engagement ring as we hiked up a mountain and proposed to her at the top. Damn thing has magical properties, lol!
My dad is still using the swing away can opener that was mounted in the kitchen of my childhood home. It’s no longer mounted since he sold the house over thirty years ago. Before it was mounted there, it belonged to my great grandparents and was in the main cabin of their estate that they owned since, well I think, forever. 😂 I don’t know exactly when they bought that place, but they had it before my dad was born in the 40s. No clue when they bought the can opener.
Toys such as Mecano (metal construction kit) and LEGO. Audio equipment, good set of speakers and a record player.
I wish I still had my dad's Pioneer stereo. The cabinet speakers we used like furniture, and the actual cabinet he had the receiver, turntable and reel to reel in. Such a good sound.
Not exactly my childhood Home, but I have my grandparents' vacuum cleaner. The thing is a bit bulky, and needs bags, but it seems damn near indestructible. It is about as old as I am.
Hang onto it. I've gone through 5 new ones in 7 years. :(
Jean jacket from old navy...believe it or not they used to have high quality denim
Teak patio set that predates my birth. I refinished it a few years ago and it looks great; stays outside year round. Bodum French Press. Stainless & borosilicate. I don't drink coffee on the regular and it is a great ritual. Lots of graphic T-shirts from the 80s/90s. Faded, but looking good. Metric boatload of tools. Grandfather died and I was given all of his hand tools. Simpler times... when stuff was easily fixable.
I have my parents teak dining room set in my house. My parents bought it in the early 70s.
Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think you can buy real teak anymore? So hang on to that.
I have a cake platter that winds up like a music box and plays happy birthday and spins the cake. My grandma bought it in the 60s and I still break it out for birthdays. I also have her kitchen aid mixer that I use to make Christmas cookies every year.
other than a worn down beat up dresser that my wife hates, not much
Damn I have that too lol. My wife always volunteers it to be tossed but it works perfectly fine so I keep it.
My ninja turtle comforter. It's struggling so it only comes out when I'm sick and curled up on the couch.
Aww. It's a very comforting comforter.
A bookshelf my grandpa built. It’s small, made to go in a corner. A big yellow tuppperware bowl which has at different times held popcorn or vomit.
stretch mutherfuckin armstrong
Jealous. Mine broke and made a mess
Technics integrated amp. Casio scientific calculator.
I still have and regularly use my McDonalds Happy Meal Hercules plate from the 90's
TBH, lots of things: lovely antique furniture pieces & decor items, hand tools of my Dad’s, *lots* of books (thankfully minus my parents’ copy of “The Joy of Sex” I stumbled across as a budding young book lover & agile bookshelf climber, turned spine in on a top shelf - it wasn’t the depicted sex acts that were burned into my mind so much as the *super hairy* 70s aesthetic x_x), roses transplanted from my childhood home when my parents sold it, garden pots & other outdoor decor, and more. I think probably most impressive, though, is the yellow GE electric hand mixer my mom must’ve bought in the 60s or 70s, still going strong and used regularly in our kitchen.
My grandmother’s Betty Crocker cookbook, complete with her hand written notes. So many of Betty Crocker recipes are timeless.
I’ve used the same hair brush, comb and travel mirror for 30+ years. The hair brush and comb are generic brands and the travel mirror was a trade show giveaway my dad brought home from a convention when I was 10.
I am 46 and I have two pots that my Grandma used (she would be 89 next week) when she was in her mid-40s. My Mom then used one of them as a popcorn pot and the other to make brownies that required melted butter and chocolate. I use both pots all the time. They both have wooden handles so I have to be very careful, but I love both.
55 and I haven’t got it, but the double bed that I got when I was 4 is still at my mother’s house in her guest bedroom along with the matching dresser that came from Sears.
My bedroom suite is at my mom’s. Her mom bought it for me when I was about 5 or 6. It’s bird’s eye maple. I remember running around the antique mall in a blue flowered sun dress while they picked it out. The vanity has a burn mark from an unattended candle I left burning while tripping my balls off on acid in high school.
I was looking at a towel today on the washing line I got about 40 years ago....
I too am using the plates and bowls from my childhood, corelle lasts a long time.
A Buck Knife pocket knife - it looks most similar to the solo 1. Great grandpa gave it to me when I was 3 (great Idea, I immediately sliced my knuckle) and I still use it all the time. I'm only 31 but I figure 28 years is long enough to warrant an answer.
A house that my grandparents bought in 1957. Although I only spent weekends in it as a child, my mother now lives there and I've been tasked with overseeing a fairly extensive round of renovations.
I ended up with my grandmothers set of 4 Pyrex bowls. 4 different sizes and colors. They sat in a box for a while but I use at least one daily in the past 4 years.
I have a pocket tape measure that my mom got in the 70s and I still use. I also still use my jackknife from Girl Scouts, same era. Oh, and my dressers are also mid-70s. My parents bought them at a garage sale in 1982, and I've used them ever since. I replaced the pulls recently, and they could do with a repainting but not badly enough for me to want to do the work.
My middle school stencil ruler (bright yellow with shapes and the alphabet). Kitchen items that I remember from my childhood and that I semi-poached from my mom (she wasn't as attached to the stuff as I am): A Duncan Hines sauce pan, a stainless steel stock pot that she bought from a door-to-door salesman, her turkey platter (with an actual turkey painted on it in relief), a Corning Ware casserole, a 9/13 baking dish, some utensils from the 60s, and a bowl that started me on the path to collecting Pyrex. My grandmother's wood jewelry box. A plastic yellow hairbrush that I just cannot find a modern similar version of so I keep using it even though it has missing teeth.
Bradford freezer my parents had it before i was born im pretty sure the company went out of business before i was born. Probably due to no return customers since it never dies.
Mercury thermometer
Not middle aged yet, but I do still use the same mechanical pencil I had in high school 10+ years ago. It's the Pentel Side FX if you're curious.
My husband was just talking about his Pentel mechanical pencils he still has from college. Which he started in 1982.
They're the best.
Poop knife
I’ve heard of Silver Spoon, but you must be *really* well off to have a GOLD POOPKNIFE.
^^^^^^^^ pure Gold
What is a poop knife?
Search poop knife and read that gold
A knife for cutting poop silly.
I have a solid wooden chest of drawers that belonged to my dad when he was a kid. He’s in his 60s.
I still have many of the things I bought when I went to college. Simple things like a stapler, a tape measure, a pocket spelling dictionary (!!), a pocket thesaurus, a small flashlight, a compact edition of the OED. Since I had such a robust habit of using them, I still use even the OED regularly today. Buying and using for life often go hand in hand. I do not have anything from my childhood at all. Not even photos. But I have a still perfectly fine pocket spelling dictionary.
My father bought me a game boy SP back in 2003 I don’t use it everyday but still works fine. I was like 10
When I started college in the 1990s, my mom gave me some Corning Ware that we had my entire life. I am never getting rid of it. My dad gave me a Craftsman toolbox full of tools. I didn't live with him so I didn't really have it growing up, but he probably had it. Another thing that I will probably never get rid of. We have my husband's mom's dining table. It's solid wood so I doubt we will ever replace it, but it needs some repairs to the leaf extension parts.
Will be 48 this year. I have some guitar stuff - even a digital effects processor (zoom or zoom II or something) that still works, but it's obviously outdated. I doubt much digital stuff made now will work 28-30 years from now. I've got a boatload of guitars, and wish I could say that I had any from my youth - first non-budget guitar was an ibanez MC 150 musician. bought for $295, sold it for $250 in college. Only had to buy four a few years ago to find a decent one, and it was, if I recall $900. But I am glad to have it. oh....green LED flashlight. late teenage years - before you could get flashlights with white LEDs. At the time, you could get red or green, and I think blue was just coming out (cost more). White was not long after, but at the time, we didn't know that. $30 for a little four LED light that makes little light, but having a flashlight that you could leave on for 11 days or something on one set of AA batteries was really novel. A pilot tipped me off when they came out because they used to at least use flashlights a lot in plane cockpits. Green was his advice due to maps often having red lines - more important to him than me. It's in my work bag in case I need a flashlight. I've had countless much brighter flashlights last a few years and die and old greenie still works. more...variable speed reversible corded craftsman drill with keyless chuck. 1990 or so? forgot about it and should pitch it. All of the CDs I bought in 1990+, too, but lots of folks probably have those. the tapes haven't fared quite so well.
In my 60's - high school year books and trophies - because my mom sent them to me a few years ago... Don't really use them. Photos. Letterman jacket - don't wear it, but in remarkable shape for 50 years old. Some knickknacks. The only only things that I really use are hand tools - some of which my father purchased in the 1950's. A cast iron frying pan that my mom bought in the 1950's. I have a pistol - which I am afraid to shoot from the 40's and a shotgun from the 1970's that is perfectly functional. Some alpaca wool items that I bought in 1981. The more I think about this, the more I remember...
Fishing tackle. You can never lose the lures you hate.
I'm packing to move and I came across a CD holder drawer that I built in high school. At the time I figured three rows of CDs would be enough storage because my goodness they were expensive at the time (looks at the boxes and suitcases of CDs under the bed) Currently it holds just random stereo related crap. It's not quite what you asked, but all my cookware is vintage from thrift store; various cast iron, pots and pans are Revere Ware, utensils are mostly Flint or Ekco. Mostly because I got out of a bad relationship ~4 years ago and left with basically my clothes and some old stereo gear.
I still squirrel hunt with the .410 shotgun I learned to shoot with as a kid. Still works good as new too
Toy Box my grandfather made me.
My sister and I learned to sew on a Singer treadle sewing machine that was our great-grandmother's. After she died, my grandfather found it in her barn, where it had apparently been stashed for decades. He restored it and gave it to mom. The machine is still fully functional (as is mom!), but now it's mostly decorative unless the next generation of great-grandkids visits. I still use an Ecko hand-cranked eggbeater with a pink Bakelite handle that came from my husband's family. We still use their Penguin ice bucket, the hollow-stem champagne flutes his parents got as a wedding gift in the 1940s, and his grandmother's Heywood-Wakefield dining and end tables (my faves!).
Those are some absolute treasures! 🫶🏾
The treadle machines are in high dead by quilters because they are heavy and hold the quilt steady. Never junk it
We wouldn't dream of junking it, ever. My mom's quite a quilter herself. Will have to ask whether she's ever quilted using the Singer. I think she mostly uses a longarm (?) and does a lot of hand quilting.
Oh longarm! Yes she is a quilter!
A good one, too — she's shown at Paducah!
I am 65. I have an aluminum ice cream scoop (has to be hand washed) and a secretary desk. I remember dusting and polishing the secretary every week as a young kid.
Panasonic KP-110 Pencil Sharpener. I bought it for myself in high school and it's on my 16yo son's desk right now.
I have an old Fireking bowl that belonged to my great grandmother.
my MIL saved my wife's high chair, and we still use it 30+ yrs later
I have a polo shirt that I bought on a trip to NYC when I was 20 years old. I'm 43 now and I still wear it and machine wash it all the time. It doesn't even have any frayed ends or show of wear.
I'm 40. My stepdad and I didn't have a good relationship until my mid/late 20s, but when I was 8 years old he got a new wallet and gave me his old one. I still use it today, it is one of the few material things I care about. Only this past February did my partner share with him I still have that wallet 32 years later.
The mixing bowl my grandmother used to make cookie dough. I use it mostly as a salad bowl. (I’m 66, so we’re talking late 50s/early 60s)
I have Tupperware modular mates that are over 40 years old that I use regularly for storage of flour, sugar, powdered milk, cat food and other dry goods. I've had many lids replaced but the main body of the containers have held up well.
A Nalgene from when I was in Boy Scouts. Had to replace a lid, but bottles still rocking.
I have two pocket knives and a set of stone, Korean mugs that I've used since I was a baby.
- I had a basic Schafer & Sons upright piano that is now 40+ years old and in great condition (I passed it along to friends) - Army jacket (1960s) and hawaiian shirt (1970s) that were my dad's - I wear rings every day that belonged to my mom, my grandmother, and my great-grandmother - dishes that were my grandparents - hand tools from my dad - my Caboodles case that I got in the early 90s. Back then it was for makeup. Now I use it as my sewing box. I had a lot more items that were still in solid working condition from either my childhood (or inherited from other family), but I got rid of them when I did a cross-country move two years ago (e.g. my mom's sewing machine, kitchen tools and dinnerware).
The dining table in my parents house is at least 100 years old if not older. Big heavy thing with turned wood legs and expandable middle. I love it, there are lots of things carved and scratched into the surface from use over the years, it feels really worn in. I’ll try to find a way to fit it, perhaps with more modern chairs though (the ones with it aren’t original). Also have a birthday card from my uncle with cute art on it from my 10th birthday sitting in a frame on my desk—the last reminder of my childhood frog era.
I'm almost 40, and I still use the steel toolbox my dad gave me for my 12th birthday. It's one of those super old-school ones, probably from the 50s, that he painted and put my name on. It's awesome for sentimental reasons, but also exactly what I need for most day-to-day work around the house.
1930’s wooden desk. Still going strong
I have 1 fork left from grandma's set. I eat with it every time it's clean. She was an amazing lady.
Perception kayak. It was a Christmas present when I was 10 or 11 years old. Still basically good as new (I’m 32 now)
I did have a plastic bedside trash can since I was 6, but my wife when we started dating threw it away without knowing… I had/have a set of tools that my dad put together for me when I was 5 and ball peen hammer. A small square with bubble level a Philips screwdriver. I have no idea the brand name but I’m 42 and they are still in my toolbox.
A glass pikachu jar repurposed from a jelly jar into a q-tip holder. Been trying to keep it in good shape since my oldest memories.
My old N64, including the transparent purple controller. My kids love super smash brothers!
A fluffy blue fleece jacket I had in middle school. Lands End. It still is in pretty good condition… not bad for twenty years of solid use!
Growing up my siblings and I (youngest of four) had a number of classic Fisher Price toys, including the famous wind up music box record player. When my son turned 1, among the gifts they sent was a new one, which is okay but they are now battery powered electronics made in China and don’t actual play the records. Last time I was at my parents’ house I went in the basement, dug through a ton of old toys and stuff to find the original, anno 1976, and brought it back with me. Still works fine.
Musical instruments
I use my grandpa’s canoe! It’s metal & heavy but boy oh boy can it take a ding. I wear my great grandmother’s, grabdmother’s & mother’s jewelry daily. And their vintage clothes often! I use my Oma’s silverware daily.
Nintendo. Specifically old school Mario and Duck Hunt!
I've had the same digital alarm clock for around 45 years. I assume my kids will inherit it, and promptly throw it away.
Custom made Winchester '94 made for my grandfather Mine since age 8. 50+years ago used yearly.
I’m 59 and I still use my college backpack regularly
A [black Parker 25 fountain pen](https://parkerpens.net/bilder_pennor/25/25-black-bg.jpg) that I've now been writing with for 43 years and it's never failed and still looks brand new.
A craftsman 3 piece toolbox/mechanics starter set from 1989. Got it for my 16th birthday. Still have 70% of the tools it came with. If I remember correctly it was $369 out of the Sears Catalog and took about a month for delivery. I’ve probably replaced 50% of the included pieces through warranty.
I am 70 and still have my Leica M. It still functions with no issues.
I just turned 50. When I was in 2nd grade, I fell in love with a Pillow Pet stuffed animal that was a gorilla. My parents told me that if I got straight As for the year, I could get the gorilla. I named him Gonzo. He is sitting on the couch in my office.
Still waking up to my alarm clock from the 80s. You know the one.
Such an amazing question. I’ve lived on 3 continents and many domestic moves. It’s bittersweet seeing the fond posts here.
Same. A surprising amount of kitchenware has been passed down the family. Some of it was purchased before I was born. We have dinnerware (and silverware) that were bought when my grandparents’ generation were getting married. They’ve got a few dents and chips, but are otherwise still in rotation! Oh, and tools. There’s a shovel that’s older than either of my parents, and a rake that is only a few years younger than that.
My favorite is my computer desk. My dad made it for me when I was around 5, it's a scaled-down version of the dining table he made around the same time. It's on the small side and I had to raise it a few inches with blocks of 2x4 but it's served me well for the past 30+ years. I can still see indents from when I was a kid doing my homework and pushed too hard... I also have the odd assortment of mismatched flatware and a couple old pots. And a stereo from '82.
I have my pacifier and my wubbie , but I don't like to brag
Quality leather wallet - still going strong!
I have a metal checkbook cover that I bought from a cataglog aimed at the gay community when I was 16. I'm 56 now and still have it. I rarely write a check so mostly it sits in a drawer but I smile every time I see it.
I still wear a parka that I bought in 1977.
I have a colllection of trolls I got over the years at Disney world. My oldest one is like 26 years old. When I go back I’d probably get another one if I didn’t already have it. I also have a handmade Easter basket my mom made me when I was born.
I'm not that old (40s) but I use the Corelle dishware my mom had (45+ years old) daily. A cross-stitched rainbow mobile my grandmother made for me when I was born has hung in every place I've lived except college, and I inherited a mission-style solid wood bookcase from my great-grandparents when I was maybe 7 or 8 that sits in my living room today. I don't have any idea how old it is but probably safe to say 60+ years old.
Furniture,jewelry,chairs,lamps,kitchenware,clothing,decor,books,drapes,rugs,tools,knives,guns etc I grew up with great depression parents. I was taught to make things last. My fathers ww2 army dress jacket is one of my favorite items to wear. I still sport my mothers camel hair coat. I sleep under my grandma's quilt and the rug she made out of old jeans is on my bedroom floor. I still mix bread in her old mixing bowl. My reading chair is my dad's old armchair. My office chair is his too. I carry his pocketknife. I use my granddads hatchet to split kindling every winter and into his old woodbox it goes. Things were meant to last back then. I still have pillowcases and hankies that my grandmother embroidered. We furnished our whole first house from stuff our relatives gave us. Didn't buy a single thing for years.
I have a wooden stool with my name on it- given to me at my baby shower. My kids and wife use it in the kitchen to reach the top shelf of the cabinets. I think it will be around longer than I will be.
I have a large ceramic bowl and silverware that we used when I was a kid. I also have a pair of wire cutters that I found in the street in 1981, still work fine. And I have a dresser and desk that were from that same era, both still in use.
an old Crosley all-in-one my dad got me for my birthday as a teen. my old ipod. The Crosley doesn't get daily use anymore but at least monthly. my ipod used to be daily use as it was hooked up in my car before I upgraded to a new car last year. I still use it on flights though to save my phone battery. oh also an old ikea wooden cabinet with glass doors. my dad bought it when I was a kid, can't remember what for anymore but he gave it to me when he moved to a smaller apartment, it's been used to store clothing, kitchen items, and now purses. and my Nintendo and Sega genesis were used pretty frequently till our most recent TV upgrade, now they don't work with it ☹️
I have a couple of guitar effects that my dad bought me new in the 70s. An electro-harmonix big muff is one. I also have a full bedroom set from Ethan Allen that my parents bought in the mid seventies. It’s timelessly styled and solid wood throughout all the pieces.
Have my parents’ kitchen table that I grew up with, an antique clock that my dad restored, and a battered tin that we still store saltine crackers in. My wife had a ring with a gemstone that has been in her dad’s family for a few generations that she gave to my daughter when she turned 21. Think that is a nice keepsake. My wife still wears a charm bracelet that was her grandmother’s and our kids gave her a few charms to add to it for mother’s day gifts. My wife still has several books that she grew up with.